Modesto polling place says voter turnout strong

In at least one Modesto polling place Tuesday morning, voter turnout was trending a bit higher than in recent elections, workers said.

By the start of the 9 a.m. hour, about 50 people had cast their votes at La Loma Grace Brethren Church and 18 had turned in their vote-by-mail ballots, said Andrene Paladini, poll inspector.

“It’s definitely heavier,” she said of turnout, but though Democratic nomination contender Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont has been courting support of younger voters, the La Loma site had seen none under 30 yet, and only a few under 40.

Of a handful of people interviewed outside the church, all said they were regular voters, and only two named the race between Sanders and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton as one of particular importance to them.

“I’m a pretty big Bernie supporter,” said Jodie Hofkamp-Echols. She said she paused “a couple of seconds” when major news agencies began reporting Monday that Clinton had clinched the Democratic nomination. “But there are other candidates who need my vote, like Kamala (Harris, vying to replace retiring U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer) and (Cathleen) Galgiani (seeking to keep her 5th state Senate District seat). It’s not just presidential.”

Elizabeth Alvarez, who recently moved to Modesto from the Bay Area, said she voted for Sanders but “if he doesn’t win, will vote for Clinton” in November.

Alvarez, who said she’s voted without fail since she turned 18, hopes the strong support for Sanders will send a message to Clinton and “she’ll lean a little more to the left.”

“I vote because it’s my right,” said Robert Bell, who said he has many friends who don’t vote because they don’t trust the system. He seemed to have doubts himself. “I wish I could make a difference. ... I’d just like to think my vote counts.”

Frank and Charvet Izzo didn’t cit any particular race as bringing them to the polls but said job creation is an important issue for them.

They also said it’s important to have high voter turnout. “The more people who get out to vote, the better it is – especially if they vote like I’m thinking, Frank Charvet said.

This story was originally published June 7, 2016 at 10:12 AM with the headline "Modesto polling place says voter turnout strong."